NEWS & ANALYSIS

ANC January 8th statement 2013 - Jacob Zuma

Statement of the National Executive Committee on the occasion of the 101th Anniversary of the African National Congress January, 8th 2013, Durban, EThekwini

Comrades, Compatriots and friends,

We meet 100 years since the promulgation of the 1913 Land Act, which dramatically robbed the indigenous people of our country of 87 percent of their land, and turned them into pariahs and wanderers in the land of their birth.

We mark 100 years of the seat of power, the Union Buildings in Tshwane, which was a centre of oppression and discrimination until the dawn of freedom in 1994, when it became a symbol of democracy, hope, peace, unity, progress and development.

It is 100 years since Charlotte Maxeke organised women to protest against pass laws in the Free State.

It is 90 years since the introduction of the Natives Urban Areas Act of 1923 or pass laws which designated all urban areas in the country as "white'' and black men had to carry permits or passes to be in towns.

We celebrate 70 years since the adoption of the landmark human rights document, the African Claims in South Africa at the 1943 National Conference of the ANC.

Sixty five years ago, the National Party came to power on 26 May 1948, marking the formal introduction of "apartheid". This served to institutionalise racism and the total segregation of the races as well as the complete disempowerment and dehumanisation of black people.

It is 60 years since the promulgation of the Bantu Education Act of 1953, which created a separate and inferior education system for black children in South Africa, to serve the interests of white supremacy.

It is 50 years since the Rivonia Trial, which resulted in long term imprisonments for members of the MK High Command.

We mark 50 years since the establishment of the Organisation of African Unity, which fought tirelessly to free this continent from colonialism and racism and to unite the African people.

It is 40 years since the 'Durban strikes' of 1973, which re-ignited the fighting spirit of our people.

Thirty years ago, the Republic of South Africa Constitution Act was introduced in 1983, creating the Tricameral Parliament, an attempt by the apartheid colonial regime to undermine the unity of the oppressed.

It is 30 years since the formation of the United Democratic Front in Mitchell's Plain in Cape Town, uniting the masses of our people behind the ANC to hasten the dawn of freedom.

We celebrate 25 years since the ending of South Africa's administration of South West Africa and the granting of independence to our sister nation of Namibia, thus opening the door to the liberation of our own country.

This year commemorates 20 years since the brutal assassination of comrade Chris Hani, the former General Secretary of the SACP and NEC member of the ANC, a painful attempt to derail our march to freedom.

We celebrate 20 years since the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to our former president, Isithwalandwe Nelson Mandela, who remains a symbol of peace, unity and reconciliation in our country.

And today, we proudly celebrate one hundred and one years of the African National Congress, the oldest liberation movement on the continent, which brought about freedom and democracy in our country.

The 53rd National Conference of the ANC which was held last month in Mangaung, deliberated at length about the impact of this racist legacy, which resulted in the persistent poverty, inequality and unemployment in our country.

As we enter the second phase of the transition from apartheid colonialism to a national democratic society, we commit ourselves to a programme of action to speed up the elimination of this legacy and bring about socio-economic freedom.

PROGRAMME OF ACTION

Consolidating our democracy

The ANC has since 1994, made substantial progress in consolidating democracy, achieving political stability, extending basic services and promoting respect for values and various freedoms that are enshrined in the Constitution.

We recall that our country's Constitution, which is one of the greatest achievements of our liberation movement and our country, has its roots in key ANC human rights documents, such as the 1923 Bill of Rights, the 1943 African Claims and the 1955 Freedom Charter.

In this regard, we call on ANC members and citizens to celebrate, promote and defend the country's Constitution at all times.

We also urge ANC members and all our people to honour the country's national symbols, which define who we are as a people.

Economic Transformation

Our economy faces skewed patterns of ownership and production. It is characterized by inequality, dualism and marginalization.

In addition, the monopoly domination of the economy is an obstacle to the goals of economic transformation, growth and development.

Decisive action is required to thoroughly and urgently transform the economic patterns of the present in order to realize our vision for the future.

Given the realities in our country, we opted for a mixed economy where public, private, cooperative and other forms of social ownership complement each other in an integrated way. Within this mixed economy, we re-affirm the active and interventionist role of the state in ensuring economic development. It must be a state that has the capacity to intervene in the economy to lead development.

The promotion of diversity is also pivotal. We will open up space for more black South Africans and more women to participate in the economy. This participation must be as employees, as creators of jobs and importantly as owners of the means of production.

These goals we shall achieve through a range of measures, contained in our development blueprint, the National Development Plan.

The Plan sets out various methods to tackle unemployment, poverty, inequality and other challenges facing our country.

We urge all South Africans to unite behind the National Development Plan, to drive its implementation and to work with our government to eradicate poverty, reduce unemployment and eliminate inequality by 2030.

Some of the key programmes of the National Development Plan are already being implemented. These include the New Growth Path framework with its major infrastructure development programme, as well as the state-led industrial policy.

The infrastructure development plan has introduced the national and central coordination of the building of dams, roads, bridges, power stations, schools, hospitals, two new universities and other infrastructure that will change the landscape of our country and the lives of our people.

We call on government to hasten the implementation of all 18 strategic infrastructure projects, especially those directed at the 23 poorest districts in the country. The projects focusing on the 23 districts will ensure the provision of water, electricity and sanitation and will change the lives of approximately 19 million people.

A few of the districts that will benefit are John Taolo Gaetsewe in Northern Cape, Ngaka Modiri Molema and Ruth Mompati in North West, Mopani, Greater Sekhukhune, Capricorn and Vhembe in Limpopo, Zululand, Amajuba, Uthukela, Sisonke and Ugu from KwaZulu-Natal, Ehlanzeni from Mpumalanga, Alfred Nzo, OR Tambo, Chris Hani, Amathole and Ukhahlamba from the Eastern Cape and Xhariep in the Free State.

The ANC government must also hasten the supply of water to 1.4 million households and of sanitation to 2.1 million households that are still without these basic needs.

The eradication of mud schools and the refurbishment of more than 2 000 schools and 886 health facilities nationwide must also be concluded as part of the infrastructure programme.

We call on the private sector to view the infrastructure programme as an opportunity to partner with our government for sustainable development and job creation.

Mining has historically been the backbone of our economy and should still contribute meaningfully to our development. We call on the ANC government to place the state mining company at the forefront of state intervention in the mining sector.

We have also resolved that the state must capture an equitable share of mineral resource rents through the tax system and deploy them in the interests of long-term economic growth, development and transformation.

Government must implement this resolution.

Importantly, the extraction of minerals should not disadvantage workers, local communities or the environment. Mining should create safe and decent jobs.

In this regard, the ANC has directed the fast-tracking of the work of the Special Presidential Package initiative, designed to improve the living and working conditions of workers in key mining towns, following the unfortunate Marikana tragedy.

We call on all role-players - government, labour, business and the community sector to work together to make this special project succeed.

As outlined, the year 2013 marks the centenary of the 1913 Land Act. The words of our first Secretary General, comrade Sol Plaatje, have special resonance:

"Awaking on Friday morning, June 20, 1913 the South African native found himself, not actually a slave, but a pariah in the land of his birth".

In 1994, we inherited this highly inequitable distribution of land ownership. Eighty seven percent of commercial arable land was owned by white farmers and businesses and 13 percent of arid was in the hands of the African majority.

We state categorically that the Land Act marked the beginning of all the problems we face today, such as landlessness, poverty and inequality. Land was taken away from the African people in order to turn them into a cheap reservoir of labour.

Overnight, people who had land and cattle suddenly had nothing, and lost their self-reliance, dignity and independence.

This historical injustice must be addressed in order to complete our freedom.

Former ANC President Dr AB Xuma, outlined the importance of land in his December 1941 Presidential address.

He said;

"The fundamental basis of all wealth and power is the ownership and acquisition of freehold title to land. From land, we derive our existence.

We derive our wealth in minerals, food, and other essentials. On land we build our homes. Without land we cannot exist. To all men of whatever race or colour, land, therefore, is essential for their wealth, prosperity and health. Without land rights any race will be doomed to poverty, destitution, ill-health and lack of all life`s essentials''.

At the 52nd national conference in Polokwane we committed ourselves to transfer 30% of the 82 million hectares of agricultural land which was white-owned in 1994 to black people by 2014.

The ANC government is unlikely to meet this target given the slow pace of land reform. We have directed our government to urgently speed up the process through a variety of measures. The implementation of these measures will take into account the principles contained in the Constitution in relation to land expropriation.

We will replace the principle of ‘willing buyer; willing seller" which has not sufficiently addressed the problem, with the ‘just and equitable' principle when expropriating land for land reform purposes.

In addition to what government has already done to implement land restitution programmes; our government will re-open the lodgement date for claims and provide for the exception to the 1913 cut-off date to accommodate historical landmarks, heritage sites and descendants of the Khoi and San who lost their land long before 1913. These amendments to our laws will take effect this year.

There will be special programmes to remember the injustices perpetrated under the 1913 Land Act. We call on all South Africans to commemorate this landmark, with a view to correcting the wrongs of the past and to cement reconciliation.

We appeal for cooperation between those needing land and those who need to release land, both assisted by government, so that we can meet the targets we have set for redistribution and restitution.

An important part of a developmental economy is the relationship between workers and employers. This relationship is underpinned by the right of workers to demand better wages and working conditions and the right of employers to listen; put their views across and engage in negotiations. The best forum for regulating labour relations has traditionally been formal bargaining structures. We cannot replace this system with informal arrangements by workers as that is not sustainable and will disadvantage workers.

We urge roleplayers to conduct themselves within the ambit of the Constitution. The right to strike and other labour rights are enshrined in the Constitution.

We call on workers not to undermine the right to strike or to protest by engaging in violent action which undermines their cause. We call on employers to enable workers to exercise their labour rights freely, while exercising their own rights as employers which are also enshrined in the Constitution.

Youth unemployment remains a major challenge in this country. The private sector, public sector, youth organisations and trade unions must unite in action to address youth unemployment through broad, holistic interventions that do not jeopardise the jobs of existing workers, or undermine workers' rights more generally.

Given that the youth is the future of our country, we direct our government to expand vocational training, link skills development with industrial growth and job creation and extend support to the youth in accessing and developing skills.

Education and Health

We will take urgent and practical steps to place education and skills development at the centre of our transformation and development agenda.

We will continue expanding access to education.

Programmes include the no-fee schools, school nutrition programmes, expansion of Early Childhood Development and Grade R enrolments as well as bursary and loan programmes at Further Education and Training colleges and universities.

Improved teaching and learning environments in schools remain a priority.

We reiterate the non-negotiables in education and call on teachers to be in school, in class, on time, teaching for at least seven hours a day. We call on learners to dedicate themselves to their studies so that they become productive members of society. Given that education is a societal issue, we urge parents and the communities to participate in the day-to-day development of children and ensure the success of their schools.

We congratulate the 2012 matric class and welcome the gradual improvements in matric results countrywide. The ANC encourages teachers and learners to ensure an improved quality of the passes each year.

The ANC is committed to the development of indigenous languages. We call on our government to prepare for the introduction of the teaching of our indigenous languages by 2014.

The ANC shall lead by example by being the champion of education and skills development in this phase of the revolution.

We call on every branch and every ANC member to strive to improve the literacy rate and general level of education and skills among the people in their ward. They must also be involved in a project or programme to improve the quality of learning and teaching in all schools.

The introduction of the National Health Insurance remains on track and plans are in place to introduce the NHI Fund by next year.

We call on all South Africans to embrace the NHI, as it will take us a step further towards better and more affordable health care for all.

The ANC congratulates and thanks all South Africans for the achievements in the HIV and AIDS campaign since 2009.

The rate of new infections has decreased. Mother to child transmission of HIV has also decreased by 50 percent. One point seven million South Africans are on antiretroviral treatment. These measures and others have dramatically improved life expectancy. Last year, the Medical Research Council published research findings indicating that life expectancy in the country had risen to 60 years in 2011, up from 56.5 years in 2009 as fewer people died of AIDS.

A major insurance company has also announced a 20 percent drop in life insurance claims and has attributed it to government successes with the HIV and AIDS programmes.

We call on ANC members to work with communities to further promote the campaign.

The ANC calls on government to improve the management of hospitals, and welcomes the measures that are being put in place to employ qualified chief executive officers, to bring about efficiency in hospitals.

Measures to improve the management of hospitals will include national government assuming responsibility for the management of academic hospitals directly attached to medical schools.

Our hospitals must become centres of excellence which are clean and efficiently managed. We call on all health professionals and workers to treat every sick person with care, empathy and professionalism.

We also urge ANC members and all in society to become actively involved in campaigns against the abuse of alcohol, drugs and others substances to promote healthy lifestyles.

Peace and Stability

The ANC welcomes the progress that is being made in the fight against crime and corruption.

We will continue to support our police services, correctional services, the defence and military veterans and the judiciary in this important area of work.

We urge our institutions to continue their hard work and not to become complacent.

We call to ANC membership to assist the police and communities to combat violence against women and children, a crime that continues to afflict our society.

We appeal to ANC members and society in general to remain vigilant and support the fight against corruption. Corruption is the enemy of development. It diverts resources meant for the poor.

We must continue supporting law enforcement agencies fight corruption, including the Chapter 9 institutions.

Legislature and Governance

The ANC government will review the powers and functions of the three spheres of government to provide greater clarity on the roles and functions of each sphere.

To promote interactive governance, we call on all ANC Members of Parliament, legislatures and councils to report back to communities on the achievements of our government.

We remind all ANC deployees that where infrastructure and resources exist to deliver services, there can be no excuse for these services not to be delivered. We now know where the gaps exist and it is time to deliver the services that will improve the lives of our people.

We call on our people to exercise their rights to protest against unsatisfactory service delivery in a peaceful and orderly manner. There can be no reason for violence as our Constitution allows freedom of expression and peaceful protests.

International work

We shall take urgent and practical steps to deepen our contribution to the renewal of the African continent through actively supporting African Union programmes and those of SADC and other AU structures.

We shall continue to work with other progressive forces in the world to achieve a just and more equitable world order.

We re-affirm support for the people of Western Sahara in their struggle for self-determination and independence and continue to support the campaign for the Release of the Cuban Five and the end of the blockage against Cuba.

We remain unequivocal in supporting the Palestinian people in their struggle for self-determination, and in the support of the two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli question.

We shall continue to pay attention to South-South cooperation and in particular relationships within India-Brazil-South Africa grouping and the Non-Aligned Movement.

The ANC will start an awareness and educational programme to deepen the understanding of the importance and relevance of BRICS among citizens and in civil society. We support the proposed establishment of the BRICS Bank, for the benefit of south-south development cooperation including Africa's development.

We urge our government to ensure that the G20 discussions are focused on stabilising the world economy and to realise a more equitable global economic system.

We will promote Nelson Mandela Day across the continent and the world, understanding that Comrade Nelson Mandela's role as a symbol of the ANC's commitment to a humane and caring society.

ORGANISATIONAL RENEWAL

All these programmes will require a strong, effective and united African National Congress to execute for the betterment of society.

The ANC pursues the National Democratic Revolution, which strives to realise a National Democratic Society.

This is;

A united state based on the will of all the people, regardless of race, gender, belief, age, language, ethnicity or geographic location.

A dignified quality of life among all the people by providing equal rights and opportunities to all citizens, and The restoration of the birthright of all South Africans regarding access to land and other resources.

We reaffirm the character of the ANC as a disciplined force of the left, a multi-class mass movement and an internationalist movement with an anti-imperialist outlook.

Being non-racial in outlook and character, the organisation will continue to have a bias towards the poor and the working class, the majority of whom are black and African, until we have achieved equality and socio-economic freedom.

The ANC will continue to promote unity within its ranks and amongst South Africans. We emphasised the importance of unity last year when we celebrated the centenary of our glorious movement.

The centenary enabled the ANC to relive our history and for the masses of our people to appreciate the role of this movement in bringing about freedom and change in our country.

Indeed unity is the rock upon which the ANC was founded, as President Mandela pointed out in a message sent to the ANC conference in Kabwe, Zambia in 1985. All members must guard this unity jealously.

We call on all members to strengthen all the structures of the movement and promote unity within the Alliance as we pursue socio-economic freedom.

The structures of the ANC and partners should continue playing their respective role in advancing the NDR.

The ANC Women's League continues to be a critical voice in the fight for the emancipation of women. As said by comrade OR Tambo, South Africa will not be truly liberated until the women of this country are liberated.

The ANC Youth League remains an important and critical structure of the ANC. We shall work with the ANC Youth League to address its challenges and will empower the League to continue to live up to its proud legacy of being a preparatory school for ANC cadreship.

The ANC Veterans League was established to reinforce our efforts to revive and strengthen our traditions, values, history and unity. The ANC must do more to assist the Veterans League to fulfil this critical role.

The Mkhonto Wesizwe Veterans Association is an important structure within the ANC, representing men and women who were prepared to lay down their lives in defence of our people and for the attainment of freedom. The ANC will continue to support our former combatants in their reintegration into society and to enable them to play a meaningful role in the organisation.

The ANC remains unwavering in its commitment to the Alliance with the South African Communist Party and the Congress of South African Trade Unions.

COSATU and the ANC must continue to work together, with the ANC playing its historical role as the shield and COSATU the spear, as pronounced by the President-General of the ANC, Chief Albert Luthuli.

The two organisations plus the SACP must continue to act in unison to defend and advance the interests of workers and the poor.

The ANC as the leader of the Alliance has the responsibility of providing revolutionary support to the Alliance components. The SACP and COSATU in turn have a responsibility to strengthen and defend the ANC.

The South African National Civics Organisation is an important component of this broad mass democratic collective.

Organisational programme of action

The ANC will develop a programme of action based on the priorities finalised in Mangaung.

This will entail developing programmes to give effect to the decision that the next 10 years will be the decade of the cadre.

We will revitalise all aspects of our cadre policy - recruitment, cadre development, deployment and accountability as well as cadre preservation.

We will institutionalise political education and consciousness by expanding the comprehensive political school system at all levels of the organisation in the next five years.

The political education, general education, academic training and skills development of the membership and leadership of the movement will receive priority attention over the next decade.

ANC members will be required to have spent longer periods in the structures of the movement, before they can become eligible for leadership positions.

We took a decision at Mangaung that for a member of the ANC to qualify to be on the National Executive Committee, such a person will need to have served in the ANC continuously for 10 years. This should foster a better understanding of our movement amongst our membership.

We will build the ANC's capability to act truly as the strategic centre of power organised along the pillars of transformation - the state, economy, and international work.

We will build the ANC's capacity to act truly as a vanguard movement for transformation.

The ANC must be capable of leading a wide range of progressive social movements in transformative struggles to change the legacy of apartheid colonialism, and overcome the triple challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequalities. This will include the strengthening of the Alliance and the mass democratic movement. The programme will also entail the revitalization and re-design of grassroots structures of the ANC and their re-organisation so as to enable them to focus on solving the problems of the people.

The ANC will activate the masses to take an active role in development and governance processes, ensuring that our people become their own liberators.

We shall take urgent and practical steps to professionalise and modernise the operations of the ANC. We shall take full advantage of the advances in the information and communication technology and management sciences to continue to put in place a better membership system. We also use technology to communicate effectively with the membership, supporters and society in general.

To maintain these core values, the movement will continue prioritising organisational discipline and eradicate the alien tendencies that have crept into our movement over the years.

These include factionalism, the violent disruption of our meetings and attacking other members, public spats and unauthorised public utterances, the use of money to buy members, gatekeeping and the manipulation of ANC processes for pre-determined outcomes.

We drew a line against ill-discipline at the National General Council in 2010. Anyone who crosses that line will face the consequences.

Conference directed that the NEC must develop a code of conduct booklet and circulate it to all branches. The NEC must also urgently develop the guidelines and constitute the Integrity Committee to promote ethics within the movement.

We call on all ANC members to subject themselves to the discipline of the ANC. The ANC is the leader of society and our behaviour must always be beyond reproach.

Working with all sectors of society - business, labour, women, youth, religious leaders, traditional leaders, non-governmental and community based organisations, the ANC will continue working tirelessly to achieve a truly non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous South Africa.

We should also remember that the ANC is the only organisation capable of uniting the people of South Africa around a common vision of delivering a prosperous South Africa.

We delivered freedom, and we shall deliver prosperity and socio-economic freedom in our lifetime.

ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

The ANC Annual Achievement Awards were initiated to promote a greater focus on the organisational tasks of building branches, strengthening local government and building the leagues.

The awards aim to highlight the features of strong branches and councils and to reward best practice within the movement.

The awards are named after outstanding cadres of the ANC, whose individual qualities of commitment and selflessness are an example to every ANC member. During their lives, each of these people made an immeasurable contribution to the struggle for freedom and a better life for all.

We are pleased to announce the winners of the ANC Achievement Awards for 2013:

The Sol Plaatje Award, conferred on the best performing ANC branch, goes to the Liliesleaf Farm branch in Gauteng.

The Charlotte Maxeke Award, conferred on the best performing ANC Women`s League branch, goes to the Yodwa Msogwaba branch in Mpumalanga.

This month South Africa will happily receive the continent as we host the Africa Cup of Nations. We look forward to a successful and exciting tournament.

We extend our best wishes to the national squad, Bafana Bafana as they prepare to do battle on the soccer field later this month.

The ANC carries the aspirations and hopes of millions of people. It is the leader of society. As members of the ANC, let us cherish this privilege, and place ourselves at the service of the South African people at all times.

THE NEC DECLARES 2013 THE YEAR OF UNITY IN ACTION TOWARDS SOCIO-ECONOMIC FREEDOM!